Ski club president wants local representation on Marble Mountain development board

A mild spell just before Christmas had quashed any hopes of an early opening at Marble Mountain. - Star file photo

Hal Cormier wants people to remember Marble Mountain ski resort was built in 1960 because of the hundreds of volunteers who played a role in making it happen.

It’s part of the reason why Cormier — the president of the Marble Mountain Ride and Ski Club — wants the provincial government to honour an agreement that was put in place in 1988 when the government took over running the facility.

Cormier’s issue stems from the Marble Mountain Development Agreement signed in 1988.

The agreement specifies a development board would be created to oversee the operation.

According to that document, the deal included articles of incorporation that clearly state the Marble Mountain Ride and Ski Club, the Town of Steady Brook and the City of Corner Brook would be guaranteed one representative on the board.

Those representatives would be chosen from a list of three candidates provided by each of the groups.

As of now, neither group has representation on the board and Cormier says that’s a problem. He wants the provincial government to honour the agreement.

The board was dissolved in the spring of 2017 by Tourism Minister Chris Mitchelmore and the present board is comprised of people from the east coast of the island with the exception of Tony Abbott, who serves as the chairman.

“There is nobody on the west coast of this province on that board,” Cormier said. “I believe there’s stuff going on behind the scenes that we have the right to know as part of the ski club who put that hill there in the first place, and keeping our rep off the board is just wrong."

He said the success of the hill depends on having people connected to the industry working together to make things happen and he doesn’t see that materializing when non-industry people are deciding the future of the hill.

Mitchelmore was not made available for an interview as he was vacationing outside the country when contacted by The Western Star. A spokesperson for the Department of Tourism, Culture, Innovation and Industry did provide a statement via email saying there is currently an interim board in place, comprised of government officials, to undertake an operational review of the ski resort with a focus on financial self-sufficiency.

The government is evaluating submissions in response to a public call for proposals and no board changes are anticipated until the process concludes, the statement read.